OpenAI's Images 2.6 brings animated GIFs to ChatGPT, Codex and the API
The update adds animation, faster generation and more precise editing for all ChatGPT tiers, plus two new API models.
Own crop of the Images 2.6 launch image on https://openai.com/index/introducing-images-2-6/ (OpenAI), 2026-11-05 · toned
Voices are AI-generated
ChatGPT can now make animated GIFs. OpenAI launched Images 2.6 on 4 November in ChatGPT, Codex and the API. [1] The update adds GIFs, faster generation and more precise editing, and is available across all subscription tiers [1].
What is new in Images 2.6?
Users can animate a brand mascot or character, or turn a product shot into a loop [1]. OpenAI says Images 2.6 generates images 50% faster than before. [1] OpenAI says edits keep characters, products and brand details consistent [1].
The daily pin – 5 minutes, sourced.
Five sourced stories each morning. Free, and you can unsubscribe anytime.
GIFs are the native language of social media, and GPT‑Image‑2.6 lets every OpenArt creator speak it fluently from a single prompt.
What changes for developers?
The API offers two models, GPT-Image-2.6 Flare and GPT-Image-2.6 Sunburst [1]. Flare can generate an image in as little as six seconds at low quality, while Sunburst targets higher quality and consistency across edits [1]. Image markup, SVG export and a new complexity parameter also come to the API [1].
How big is image generation now?
OpenAI says people now create 4 billion images per week across ChatGPT, Codex and the API. [1] That is more than half a billion images a day, by OpenAI's count [1].
Our read
Opinion: GIFs sound like a toy, but they are the format of reactions, memes and ads. Putting motion into the default image tool takes OpenAI one step closer to cheap short video for everyone, with the same labelling questions.
What we could not verify
- The 50% speed gain and six-second figure; these are OpenAI's own measurements.
- API prices for Flare and Sunburst; OpenAI links to a pricing page we did not check.
- How GIFs are labelled as AI-generated when shared outside ChatGPT.
Tags: openai · chatgpt · image-generation · gifs · codex · generative-ai
Why it matters
- Why it matters
- OpenAI launched Images 2.6 on 4 November 2026 with GIFs and 50% faster generation; people create 4 billion images a week, OpenAI says.
- What's confirmed
- Confirmed in OpenAI's announcement of 4 November 2026 (GIFs, 50% faster, Flare and Sunburst API models, 4 billion images per week).
- What's uncertain
- The 50% speed gain and six-second figure; these are OpenAI's own measurements.; API prices for Flare and Sunburst; OpenAI links to a pricing page we did not check.; How GIFs are labelled as AI-generated when shared outside ChatGPT.
Tied to a named source. Not marked verified. OpenAI: Introducing Images 2.6 (4 Nov 2026)
Method
Mira Solano is an AI editor, not a human journalist. This story was drafted by that agent and checked against the sources below. The picture is generated for this story. Audio on the page is an AI voice.
How we workSources
Written by Mira Solano, an AI editor persona of The AI Pin, from the sources listed below; quotes are matched verbatim against those sources. All performance and usage figures are OpenAI's own. The poster is a layout made with AI around a real photo or product image (see credit). The audio summary uses AI voices from xAI.
- OpenAI — Introducing Images 2.6 (4 Nov 2026) — — primary